
("lass. E-U4 . 
Book -113X1151. 



A, 






MEMORIAL ADDRESSES 



LIFE AND CHARACTER 



OF 



R. C, DE GRAFFENREID 



(Late a Representative from Texas) 



DELIVERED IN THE 



HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND SENATE, 



FIFTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS, 
Second Session. 



WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 

I903- 



Ea'( 



TABLE OF CONTENTvS. 



Page. 
Proceedings in the House 

Address of Mr. Russell, of Texas IO 

Address of Mr. Stephens, of Texas ,, 

Address of Mr. Kleberg, of Texas I9 

Address of Mr. Burgess, of Texas 21 

Address of Mr. Wiley, of Alabama 2 , 

Address of Mr. Sibley, of Pennsylvania 2 g 

Address of Mr. Broussard, of Louisiana , 

Addrecs of Mr. Bartholdt, of Missouri 34 

Address of Mr. Slayden, of Texas. . . . '. ,5 

Proceedings in the Senate ,„ 



Death of R. C. De Graffenreid. 



Proceedings in the House. 

December 2, 1902. 

death of hon. k. c. de graffenreid and hon. john l. 

sheppard. 

Mr. Lanham. Mr. Speaker, since the first session of the 
Fifty-seventh Congress adjourned death has laid a heavy hand 
upon the delegation in this House from the State of Texas. 
Two of our honored Representatives have passed away. On 
August 30 last, at the Riggs House, in this city, the Hon. 
R. C. De Graffenreid, late a Representative from the Third 
Congressional district of Texas, died suddenly. On the nth 
of October last, at Eureka Springs, Ark., after a long and 
painful illness, the Hon. John L. Sheppard, late a Representa- 
tive from the Fourth Congressional district of Texas, died. 

These were true and worthy men. They were faithful 
Representatives in this House. This is not the time to enter 
upon any extended tribute to their memories or to speak at 
length of their lives and characters. On some suitable occa- 
sion hereafter we shall ask the House to designate a time 
when we can pay such tribute as we believe these good men 
deserve at our hands. For the present, Mr. Speaker, I send 
to the desk the following resolutions, and I ask that they be 
adopted. 

5 



6 Proceedings in the House. 

The Speaker. The gentleman from Texas submits resolu- 
tions for the present consideration of the House, which the 
Clerk will read. 

The Clerk read as follows: 

Resolved, That the House lias heard with profound sorrow of the death 
of Hon. R. C. De Graffenreid, late a Representative from the Third 
Congressional district of Texas, and of Hon. John L. Sheppard, late 
a Representative from the Fourth Congressional district of Texas. 

Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be communicated to the 
Senate. 

Resolved, That as a further mark of respect to the memory of these 
deceased members the House do now adjourn. 

The Speaker. The question is on agreeing to the resolu- 
tions. 

The question was put, and the resolutions were unanimously 
agreed to; and, in accordance therewith (at i o'clock and 40 
minutes p. m.), the House adjourned. 

December ii, 1902. 

eulogies on the late hons. john l. sheppard and 
reese c. de graffenrhid. 

Mr. Ball, of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I offer the resolution 

which I send to the desk. 

The Clerk read as follows: 

Resolved, That the House meet on Sunday, the 25th day of January, 
1903, at 12 o'clock noon, for eulogies upon the life and character of Hons. 
John L. Sheppard and Reese C. De Graffenreid, deceased, late 
members of this House from the State of Texas. 

The resolution was agreed to. 



Memorial addresses. 

Sunday, January 25, 1903. 

The House met at 12 o'clock noon, and was called to order 
by Mr. Grosvenor, as Speaker pro tempore. 

The Chaplain, Rev. Henry N. Couden, D. D., offered the 
following prayer: 

We come to Thee, Almighty God our Heavenly Father, 
with gratitude welling up in our hearts for all the disclosures 
Thou hast made of Thyself unto Thy children, and especially 
do we thank Thee for that personal revelation in the life and 
character of Thy Son, Jesus Christ, through whom we are 
enabled to interpret to some extent the purpose for which we 
are called into existence. We thank Thee that we may look 
up to Thee and call Thee Father, realizing that in that name 
the whole world is akin. 

We thank Thee that Thou hast bound us together, through 
the tenderest and sweetest ties, into families; that Thou hast 
bound us together by the ties of friendship, which continually 
enlarge the circle of fraternity, so that though we come here 
from widely different sections of our great country, imbued 
with different political views and religious sentiment, we may 
lay these all aside on such occasions and see only that which 
was noble and true and pure and just in those who wrought 
upon this floor. 

We thank Thee for that something in us which tells us we 
shall never die, for that something which tells us that truth 
shall outlive the stars, for that something which tells us that 
love shall finally be satisfied. 

7 



8 Memorial Addresses. 

Let Thy blessings descend, Heavenly Father, upon the 
families of those who are in mourning and sorrow over their 
lost ones. Comfort them, we beseech Thee, by the blessed 
assurance that by and by they shall meet in another world, 
where there shall be no more separation. 

Help us so to order our lives that we may live each day to 
prepare us for the next, so that when we shall finish our course 
in this world we shall be prepared to enter upon the larger, 
grander life in a fairer world. 

Hear us in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

The Journal of the proceedings of yesterday was read and 
approved. 

ORDER OF PROCEDURE. 

The Speaker pro tempore. The House of Representatives 
is in session pursuant to three special orders of the House, 
which the Clerk will report. 

The Clerk read as follows: 

On motion of Mr. Brandegee, by unanimous consent, it was 

Resolved , That the House meet on Sunday, the 25th day of January, 
1903, at 12 o'clock noon, for eulogies upon the life, character, and serv- 
ices of the Hon. Charles Addisox Russell, deceased, late a member 
of tins House. — Order made in the House Thursday, December //, 1902. 

On motion of Mr. Ball, of Texas, it was 

Resolved, That the House meet on Sunday, the 25th day of January, 
A. D. 1903, at 12 o'clock noon, for eulogies upon the life, character, and 
services of the Hon. John L. Sheppard and Hon. REESE C. De Graf- 
FENREID, deceased, late members of this House from the State of 
Texas. — Order made in the House Thursday, December //, 1902. 

EULOGIES OX THE LATE REPRESENTATIVE DE GRAFFEXREID. 

Mr. Henry of Texas. Mr. Speaker, it was the intention of 
my colleague from Texas, Mr. Cooper, to be here to-day to 
offer the resolutions and participate in the memorial services 
with reference to our late colleague, Mr. De Graffexreid; 



Memorial Addresses. 9 

but, on account of indisposition, he is not able to be present. 
He has desired me to request specially that he be permitted to 
print remarks in the Record. 

There being no objection, leave was granted. 

Mr. Russell. Mr. Speaker. I offer the resolution which I 
send to the desk. 

The Clerk read as follows: 

Resolved, That in pursuance of the special order heretofore adopted 
that the House proceed to pay tribute to the memory of Hon. REESE C. 
De GRAFFENREID. late a member of the House of Representatives from 
the State of Texas. 

Resolved, That as a particular mark of respect to the memory of the 
deceased and in recognition of his eminent abilities as a faithful and 
distinguished public servant, the House at the conclusion of the memorial 
proceedings of this day shall stand adjourned. 

Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions to the Senate. 

Resolved, That the Clerk be, and is hereby, instructed to send a copy of 
these resolutions to the family of the deceased. 



io Life and Character of R. C. Dc Graffenreid. 



Address of Mr. Russell, of Texas. 

Mr. Speaker: The afflicting hand of Divine Providence has 
been heavily laid upon the delegation from Texas in the 
United States Congress since its last session. Reese C. De 
Graffenreid and John L. Sheppard have " embarked on 
that mysterious sea that never yet has borne on any wave the 
image of a returning sail." I knew each of these gentlemen 
for a number of years, and my relations with them were always 
cordial and friendly. 

Mr. De Graffenreid was my immediate predecessor in this 
body, and what I shall say on this solemn occasion will be 
concerning his life and character. 

Reese C. De Graffenreid was born in the State of Ten- 
nessee in the year 1859, and was a member of a distinguished 
family of that State, so rich in historic names. 

The imperial Commonwealth of Texas is indebted to the 
sous of Tennessee for some of the most resplendent pages of 
the most heroic history that ever garlanded with glory the 
records of any people. From Tennessee came Davy Crockett, 
one of the immortal heroes of the Alamo, and George C. 
Childress, the author of the declaration of Texas' independ- 
ence, and John A. Wharton and James W. Throckmorton and 
Ben McCullough and John H. Reagan, that grand old man 
whose fullness of years has not prevented him keeping abreast 
with the times and who is to-day the brilliant link which 
connects the splendid progress of the new South with the 
splendid civilization of the old regime. 

Mr. De Graffenreid attended the academic schools at 
Franklin, and subsequently graduated at the University of 



Address of Mr. Russell, of Texas. 1 1 

Tennessee at the age of 19 years. One year thereafter he 
received a diploma from the school of law at Lebanon and 
began at once the practice of his chosen profession at Franklin. 
These facts evidenced the precocity of his mind and gave early 
assurance of a future distinguished career. Shortly after 
graduating from the Lebanon school Mr. De Graffenreid 
removed from Franklin to the city of Chattanooga, where he 
practiced law for one year, and then went to Texas, in which 
State he continuously thereafter resided. In the year 1883 
Mr. De Graffenreid began the practice of law at Longview, 
Tex., where his superior ability at once attracted a large 
clientage. 

He was elected county attorney of Gregg County, and in 
1S88 was chosen Presidential elector on the Democratic ticket 
and made a brilliant campaign for the principles and candi- 
dates of his party. In 1S96 he was elected from the Third 
Congressional district of Texas to the Fifty-fifth Congress. 
In 1898 he was returned without opposition to the Fifty -sixth 
Congress and was reelected in 1900 as a member of the Fifty- 
seventh Congress. He died at the city of Washington on the 
30th day of August, 1902. These dates mark the limits and 
some of the prominent features in the career of the distin- 
guished Representative in honor of whose memory we are now 
assembled. 

Mr. Speaker, the death of no one whom I can call to mind 
more forcibly emphasizes the uncertain and precarious tenure 
we have on life. Of stalwart and robust frame, of exceptional 
physical strength, in the full pulse and glow of magnificent 
health, he was suddenly beckoned by the grim destroyer. 

I shall never forget the sensations which shocked me when I 
received the news of the death of Mr. De Graffenreid. I 
did not then realize, and I doubt if any of us has yet realized, 



12 Life and Character of R. C. De Graffe?ireid. 

that this superb specimen of manhood was no more. Truly, 
his death has taught us that "there is nothing earthly certain 
but uncertainty." 

Mr. De Graffenreid was a college-bred man and had the 
advantages of a liberal education. His mind was a rich 
storehouse of poetry and mythology and history, from which 
he freely drew to illustrate and adorn the discourses and 
arguments which I have heard him deliver on the hustings 
and at the bar. 

For four years I was prosecuting attorney in the district 
which included the county in which he lived. He enjoyed 
a very large practice, both civil and criminal, and was excep- 
tionally fortunate in securing verdicts. He and I were fre- 
quently opposed in the trial of causes in the courts. In the 
management of his cases he was keen, alert, and possessed of 
rare tact and judgment, and in presenting his side of the 
issues, either to the court or the jury, he was resourceful, 
persuasive, and eloquent. 

As a political debater he was impetuous and forcible, full 
of ideas, and never halting for the most beautiful language 
in which to clothe them. Indeed, his graces and gifts of 
oratory admirably equipped him for the discussion of public 
questions and rendered him a valuable champion and danger- 
ous antagonist in the arena of forensic contest. 

It was my fortune to oppose him for the Democratic nomi- 
nation for Congress last year. The contest was a spirited 
one. It began in April and lasted until the middle of June. 
We (if ten met in joint debate, and I recall now with sincere 
pleasure that neither of us ever forgot the courtesies and 
amenities which always exist between gentlemen, and neither 
of us did anything which tended to destroy the friendship 
which subsisted between us. 



Address of Mr. Russell, of Texas. 13 

There were blows received and delivered by eacli of us, 
but no wound was inflicted which time would not have 
quickly healed, and I have no reason to doubt but that the 
contest closed with each of us possessing the respect and 
esteem of the other. 

Mr. De Graffenreid was a man of more than ordinary 
personal magnetism. I know of no one in the Congressional 
district which he represented who had a larger or more 
devoted personal following. His disposition was affectionate 
and his manners were gracious, without the semblance of 
being patronizing, and few were insensible to the influences 
which fell on all who came '•within the charmed circle of 
his presence." 

I saw the body of Reese C. De Graffenreid laid to 
rest in the beautiful cemetery of the little city of Longview, 
where he lived and was loved. The houses of business were 
closed, the schools were suspended, and the sable evidences 
of grief were everywhere displayed. An immense concourse 
of people, not only from his own place of residence, but 
from the surrounding counties, drawn from every class and 
condition of life, were there, bringing tokens of affection in 
the shape of lovely flowers. His friends and neighbors bore 
cheerful testimony in the shape of brief public addresses to 
the esteem in which he was held, and the sincere grief 
which was everywhere manifested was an indubitable evi- 
dence of his universal popularity and of the strong hold 
which he had upon the affections of the people. 

One of the most beautiful traits in Mr. De Graffenreid's 
character, and one which always excited my admiration, was 
his affectionate regard for little children. Providence had not 
blessed his home with childhood's happy laughter, and he 
seemed to lavish his love upon the children of others. It was 



14 Life and Character of R. C. Be Graffiti re id. 

a pleasing spectacle to see this strong and stalwart man with 
some little child upon his lap going into its childish joys and 
sports with keenest zest, or endeavoring to soothe its childish 
troubles with tenderest sympathy. 

Mr. Speaker, of his career in this body I leave his colleagues 
who served with him to speak, and I will conclude my tribute 
to his memory by saying that he was an accomplished lawyer 
and eloquent advocate at the bar, an adroit and forceful debater 
on the hustings, a loyal and unflinching friend, and a devoted 
and affectionate husband. 



Address of Mr. Stephens, of Texas. 15. 



Address of Mr. Stephens, of Texas. 

Mr. Speaker: The House of Representatives is asked to 
render its last tribute of respect, of honor, and sorrow to the 
memory of Reese Calhoun De Gkaffexreid, late a member 
of this House from Texas. To-day his associates on this floor 
are assembled to place on the everliving annals of this House 
the record of their respect and admiration for his many manly 
virtues. 

These everliving annals is the casket in which is stored 
many bright gems of the genius, learning, and eloquence of 
the departed great men who have been members of this House; 
they have thus left behind them an undying inheritance for 
our study, our emulation, our instruction, and our encourage- 
ment to renewed efforts to elevate our race and to assist the 
lowly and humble to a higher plane of life, and, above all, 
to teach us that there is a life beyond, a life of joy and bright- 
ness, if we will but improve and unfold the moral attributes 
that an All-wise Being has implanted within us, and we will 
be comforted by this course in after years. What more com- 
forting thought can come to the bereaved wife of our departed 
friend than the thought that her love, care, and devotion 
brightened the life of her husband and wisely stimulated his 
laudable ambition to benefit mankind. 

Mr. Speaker, it was my privilege to become a member of 
this House at the same time as my deceased friend, Mr. De 
Graffenreid; and coming from the same State, belonging 
to the same political party, and having graduated from the 
same law school, we soon became the best of friends. I take 



1 6 Life and Character of R. C. De Graff C7ireid. 

the following sketch of our deceased friend's life from the 

Congressional Directory: 

REESE Calhoun De Graffenreid, Democrat, of Longview, was 
born in Franklin, Tenn., in the year 1S59; attended the academic school 
of that place until 13 years old, and then went to the University of Ten- 
nessee and graduated after taking the four years' course, at the age of 
19; graduated from the Lebanon Law School at the age of 20; a graduate 
of the Lebanon Law School having the right to practice law before 
majority, he commenced the law practice immediately at Franklin; 
removed to Chattanooga, where he practiced law for one year, and then 
removed to Texas; helped to build the Texas and Pacific Railway, and 
afterwards was assistant fuel agent and brakeman on that road; in 1S83 
resumed the practice of his profession at Longview, Tex.; was elected 
county attorney and resigned two months afterwards; in 1S8S was elector 
on the Democratic ticket; made the race for Congress in 1S90 with Hon. 
C. B. Kilgore and ex-Governor Hubbard as opponents and was beaten; 
was elected to the Fifty-fifth Congress, and was reelected to the Fifty- 
sixth and Fifty-seventh Congresses. 

Death, indeed, is no respecter of persons, and is always an 
unbidden guest. Four times in as many years this unwelcome 
visitor has, unbidden, entered the ranks of the Texas Con- 
gressional delegation, composed of only thirteen members, 
and Cranford, Burke, Sheppard, and De Graffenreid have 
been called to the other shore. Let us have faith to believe 
that these, our late Congressional comrades and friends, are 
not swallowed up in death, but that they now dwell beneath 
the loving smiles of that Divine Power who gave them life 
and made them mortal. 

When the Mohammedan, at the setting of the sun, kneels 
down in prayer, his utterances are inaudible, and when we 
think of our departed comrades as we do to-day, we, too, 
silently contemplate the time when we also must pass over the 
dark and shadowy river and rest under the shade of the trees 

beyond. 

Let the wild Texas flowers be their t >mbstone, 

And dewdrops, pure and bright, 
Their epitaph, the angels wrote 

In the stillness of the night. 



Address of Mr. Stephens, of Texas. 17 

We need no slab of pallid marble, 

With white and ghostly head, 
To tell the wanderers in our Texas vales 

The virtues of our dead. 

Our friends and colleagues can never more return to the 
shores of time. Their voices are stilled forever, but let us 
profit by the influences for good that they have left behind 
them, so that their noble qualities of mind and heart may 
not be lost, but may linger with us like the perfume of sweet 
flowers even when we have long parted from them. 

The sudden death of Mr. De Graffenreid was a shock to 
his constituency and to the House and a personal bereavement 
to his family and colleagues. He seemed to have a premonition 
of approaching death; in one of the last conversations I had 
with him I congratulated him on his splendid physique and 
excellent health. He seriously replied, " You will live much 
longer than I; in fact, I do not think that I shall live long; 
there is something wrong in here," placing his hand on his 
heart. We soon parted, and not until I received the telegram 
telling of his death from heart failure did I fully realize the 
cause of his gloomy forebodings and great seriousness: 

The following essay was written by our deceased friend and 

printed since his death by Mr. Will L,. Sargent, a friend who 

knew him and honored him for his many manly qualities. 

This essay more than anything I could say gives us an insight 

to the inner nature of Mr. De Graffenreid and shows what 

he himself conceived to be his duty to himself and mankind. 

He said in part: 

Each one must act his part and receive his portion of honor or shame. 
Arid it matters not whether we labor in the departments of agriculture, 
speed our influence in political circles, or exert our energies in scientific 
researches, we do well to bear in mind that the brightest rewards and 
highest pleasures which mortals know is a consciousness of duty performed, 
and that the noblest encomium is the approval of our own conscience. To 

H. Doc. 469 2 



1 8 Life and Character of R. C. Dc Graff enreid. 

gain the indorsement of this, the highest impulse of our nature, is to attain 
the acme of all human greatness. 

In order to accomplish this in such a way as to produce the greatest 
amount of happiness, both to ourselves and to our fellow-men, it is by 
no means incumbent \ipon us to attack some favored theory or seek to 
demolish some doctrine of long and reputable standing; nor is it necessary 
that we institute and promulgate vain and delusive dogmas, by which the 
unthinking populace are intoxicated and whirled into giddy dance beyond 
the influence of the few who investigate with prayer and with the philoso- 
phy of reason and morality. 

Whether it is ours to command or obey; to walk in the gilded halls and 
marble palaces of wealth, or to dwell in the peasant's humble cottage, we 
should ever be ready to lend an ear to that still, small voice which says, 
" Let your light shine and let not that light be darkness." 



Address of Mr. Kleberg, of Texas, 19 



Address of Mr. Kleberg, of Texas. 

Mr. Speaker: I do not believe in empty panegyric at any 
time, and what I may say upon this solemn occasion is 
prompted by a sincere purpose to perform a sad duty to one 
whom I admired for his many' manly qualities and his warm 
friendship. R. C. De Graffenreid was a man of sterling 
integrity and of unflinching loyalty, both as applied to prin- 
ciples and men. He neither faltered in his convictions nor in 
his friendship; you would always find him true to both — true 
as the needle to the pole. His heart was large as the man; and 
whenever he took you in his confidence and you gave your 
confidence in return, you could feel sure that your trust was 
never betrayed. 

Impulsive and dashing in his antagonisms, he was yet 
knightly and generous toward those who crossed his purposes 
whenever they appealed to his sense of honor and fairness. 
Never vindictive, though always ready to accept a challenge 
to open combat, he struck straight from the shoulder and never 
wore a rusty blade or aimed a foul blow. His nature was 
manly, candid, and brave; his aims direct, lofty, and pure. 
Under his rough exterior there beat a heart full of love and 
kindness, and he would go out of his way to do a friend a 
favor. 

He loved and served faithfully the great people who honored 
him with their suffrage and was always mindful of the public 
trust with which they had clothed him in this great legisla- 
tive assembly. He was patriotic and high-minded and thor- 
oughly imbued with love of country and a sense of civic duty, 



20 Life and Character of R. C. De Graffenreid. 

painstaking and untiring in his efforts to serve his constitu- 
ents, and prompt in the discharge of his official duties. In his 
death the country has lost a faithful servant, his State a noL/e 
son, and his many friends a loyal friend, and as we deplore 
the death of our colleague in this solemn hour let us invoke 
the blessings and the protection of a kind Providence to hover 
over her who is left alone to mourn the loss of a beloved 
husband. 



Address oj Mr. Burgess, oj Texas. 21 



Address of Mr. Burgess, of Texas. 

Mr. Speaker: 1" tht prime of a .splendid manhood Reese 
Calhoun De Graffenreid was suddenly called into the 
great beyond. In life he was my true and loyal friend. 
And much as I dislike to speak of death, I feel constrained 
liv the deep affection we bore each other to offer my feeble 
tribute to his memory. His death was pathetic. Compara- 
tively a young man, in full possession of fine mental faculties 
and an extraordinary physique, far from home and friends, 
this man, who loved all these so fervently, was suddenly 
seized by the icy, relentless hand of Death, and without 
opportunity for a parting hand-grasp from friends, or a single 
tender word from his dear wife, in a moment he was hurried 
to ' ' that bourne from which no traveler returns. 

The physician summoned to his bedside found his spirit 
fled beyond the power of earthly medicine into the presence 
of the Great Physician. It was a distinct, sudden shock to 
his family and friends, whose name is legion. "De," as he 
was commonly and familiarly called by his friends, was a 
lawyer of fine ability, especially strong as a jury lawyer, by 
reason of his mastery of the facts of his case, his logic and 
eloquence, and, perhaps more than all, his touch with men. 
His was a fine brain, rich in native force and quickness. In 
politics he was known as a fighter who in all matters of prin- 
ciple asked no quarter and gave none. As the great Ingersoll 
said of the greater Conkling, "He walked the highway of 
his own will, and kept the company of his self-respect." 

He was an honest man, in whose soul lurked not the 
shadow of a lie; a patriot whose love of country permeated 
every fiber of his being; a public servant loyal to every trust; 



22 Life and Character of R. C. Dc Graffenreid. 

a man of clear convictions, and of that greater trait, the 
courage of them. In thought and feeling he was democratic 
in the broadest and best sense; innately a gentleman, not so 
much by the outward polish of this world, but by the gift 
of God; one whose tenderness toward all mankind suggests 
the beautiful lines: 

Nature, with a lavish hand, 

Sends forth her nobly born, 
And laughs the paltry attributes 

Of wealth and rank to scorn. 
She molds with care a spirit rare, 

Half human, half divine, 
And cries, exulting, "Who can make 

A gentleman like mine?" 

All along through life, in private and in public, friends 
sprang up on every side. Here in this Capitol by his fellow- 
members he was beloved personally; with all the employees 
of the House he was popular; and that body of brain}' men 
which constitute the molders of thought largely in this 
country, the press boys, all liked him. In fact, it may be 
almost said that friendship was this man's religion and that 
he worshiped at its shrine with an unfaltering devotion. 
Loyalty to his friends, whether in prosperity or in adversity, 
seems to have been the law of his being. He was ever 
responsive to this law, and few men, if any, were more gen- 
erous in their friendships than this noble heart who sleeps 
his last sleep. 

He had a heart as true and tender as a woman's; it over- 
flowed with love for children, for the true and beautiful in 
every avenue of life. In sadness I have uttered these truths 
about my dead friend. I trust that as the light of a quenched 
star comes down to us for years after it is extinguished, so 
may the memory of his noble heart linger in sweetness forever 
in the hearts of his friends. 



Address of Mr. Wiley, of Alabama. 23 



Address of Mr. Wiley, of Alabama. 

Mr. Speaker: A veil hangs over the face of the statue of 
Isis, with this inscription: "I am that which is, has been, 
and shall be. No mortal can ever lift my veil." 

Death lays his cold fingers upon us, claims us as his 
own, and to the pale realm of shade bears us as his prey 
With an unpitying rap he will be heard in turn knocking 
at the door of us all. We can not tear his veil asunder. 
We die and go away without ever having penetrated his 
mysteries. 

Another of our brothers, Reese Calhoun De Graffen- 
reid, has paid to nature her last great debt, and gone from 
this strange world ' ' no more to linger where the sunbeams 
must fade." In the enjoyment of robust health, in the pride 
of vigorous manhood, he was cut off, like a flower in full 
bloom. His hands are folded. His lips are closed. These 
walls shall hear his voice no more forever. His sun went 
down before its setting, "not darkened, but no longer seen." 
He has glided away from amongst his earthly labors to a 
life beyond, "where the rainbow never fades, and where 
the stars are spread out like the islands that slumber on the 
sea." 

One sentiment pervades and depresses us all. It is that of 
sincere sorrow at the death of this splendid man. Yet he is 
not wholly dead. He lives in our affectionate remembrance 
and esteem, as well as in the efficient services he rendered, 
and the good he accomplished here and elsewhere. Our 
bereavement is not shut up in his tomb. We need not weep 



24 Life and Character of R. C. Dc Graffenreid. 

in secret, for we enjoy the tender privilege, here and now, 
of pouring out our loves and griefs and tears over his newly 
made grave. 

I knew the distinguished dead intimately and well. It 
was my pleasure to serve with him, not only on the floor 
of the House, but in the performance also of the many routine 
duties of the committee room during the long session of the 
Fifty-seventh Congress. My acquaintance ripened into a deep 
attachment for him. He was a just, generous, liberal-minded, 
big-hearted, magnanimous man. A manlier man I never 
knew. 

Painstaking, courteous, loyal, chivalrous, he toiled faith- 
fully, not only for the people of the Congressional district he 
had the honor to represent in this Chamber and of the 
adopted State in which he lived, but also for whatever he 
conceived to be to the best interests of the whole coun- 
try, regardless of boundary lines and irrespective of party 
affiliations. 

Self-reliant, able, and strong, equipped with a high order 
of talent, a trained and disciplined intellect, he was essentially 
a useful man. His energy was tireless, his integrity stainless. 
Patient in the conquest of details, with a determination to suc- 
ceed, he could not and would not occupy a position of medioc- 
rity. He literally compelled success, and leaped quickly into 
the arena of an active and lucrative law practice, which' he 
willingly sacrificed in order to serve at the national capital a 
constituency which delighted to honor him. The people, ever 
ready to appreciate and reward merit, thrice elected him a 
member of this body, and he died here in the city of Wash- 
ington, at his post of duty, while serving the sixth year of 
his term as Representative from the Third district of Texas. 
Let us cherish the hop.2 that he is not really dead, hut only 



Address of Mr. Wiley, of Alabama, 25. 

departed; that he has left us but for a little while to go down 
"into his garden to gather spices; to feed in his garden, 
and gather lilies." 

His greatest triumphs were achieved in political contests, 
for which his natural endowments preeminently fitted him. 
Physically courageous and ' ' intellectually pugnacious, ' ' he 
was in forensic debate combative — sometimes astutely aggres- 
sive. A devoted friend, an uncompromising adversary, with a 
temperament eminently positive, he intrepidly attacked or reso- 
lutely defended any position he was called on either to assault 
or to maintain. Reared among the people, he was familiar 
with their struggles and acquainted with their needs. Possess- 
ing a rare facility and grace of speech, endowed with the gift 
of clear analysis and the power of convincing logic, he neither 
feared disaster in a cause he believed to be right nor failed, 
when occasion required, to display the lofty courage of his con- 
victions in respect to any matter demanding consideration at 
his hands. 

He never professed, while living, to be an infallible man, 
free from every human fault and frailty. Indeed, his record 
abounded in romantic lights and shadows. He was not a Peck- 
sniff or a Robert Beaufort — those hypocritical characters so 
graphically pictured in works 01 fiction by the brilliant pens of 
Dickens and Bulwer. He was not one of those "rigidly 
righteous," "holier than thou" men of decorous phase and 
heartless action, who conspicuously observe the hollow forms 
and empty conventionalities of polite society, and, while care- 
ful not ever to offend the proprieties of a thinly veneered life, 
never do a brave, benevolent, or unselfish act. Such men are 
wholly incapacitated to sit in judgment upon the shortcomings 
of their brethren, because they are either ignorant of their 
natures or strangers to their weaknesses. They are never 



26 Life and Character of R. C. De Graffenreid. 

merciful. Their verdicts are always harsh. Like the unjust 
creditor described in the Bible, the}- are ever ready to take a 
victim by the throat and mutter through their well-set teeth, 
" Pay me that thou owest." They forget what the poet has 
so prettily said: 

A little word in kindness spoken, 

A smile, a sympathizing tear, 
Has often healed the heart that's broken, 

and might also have added — and proven the strongest helping 
hand, outstretched in a moment of peril to lead back an erring 
sou of humanity to the straight, sure paths of virtue and of 
peace. 

A wise man once aptly declared, "Those who exclude are 
really the excluded." Those who seek capriciously or 
unjustly to "cast out" others from the holy temple of ttimes 
find themselves the ones who are actually cast out. He was 
not his "brother's keeper." He condemned no mortal without 
a hearing. There was nothing pharisaical in the blended 
elements which entered into his mental, moral, and physical 
make-up. He was not addicted to external forms and cere- 
monies. For all manner of shams and false pretense he had a 
haughty contempt. 

If he did not make the show, he had nevertheless the spirit 
of that broad, catholic philanthropy which recognizes the 
fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man. His earthly 
career was pitched on a high plane, above creeds and beyond 
doctrines. He was a magnetic gentleman, slow to anger, 
prompt to respond to all appeals for neighborly kindness, and 
quick to dispense God-like charity in relieving the poor. 

But he is gone! Across the threshold of this Hall the tread 
of his footsteps will never be heard again. We have borne 
him to his grave. Gathered about his bier, let us remember 



Address of Mr, Wiley, of Alabama. 27 

and emulate his many virtues. The fairest funeral wreath we 
can now lay on his coffin is to imitate his good deeds. Let our 
thoughts of him be associated with all that is pleasant and 
genial and warmhearted and noble and brave and true. 
Impressed, too, with this solemn occasion, we may learn a use- 
ful lesson from the words of the Psalmist: 

Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days what it 
is, that I may know how frail I am. 



28 Life and Character of R. C. Dc Graffenreid. 



ADDRESS OF MR. SIBLEY, OF PENNSYLVANIA. 

Mr. Speaker: I esteem it a privilege upon this occasion to 
join my colleagues in offering some tribute of esteem and 
affection to our departed friend. It was my pleasure to know 
him well and better to appreciate with the passing days those 
manly qualities which endeared him to us. 

He was a man of great self-reliance, of rugged and robust 
character, yet withal tender and affectionate toward his friends. 
I believe he was always brave and always truthful. Though 
rarely taking the floor of this body to join in debate upon 
questions at issue, it always seemed to his friends that this 
arose through diffidence; certainly not through lack of ability. 

Many of us were present upon one occasion when Mr. De 
Graffenreid was called upon to respond to "The State of 
Texas." Mr. Speaker, for beauty of diction, for eloquence 
which rose almost to the heights of sublimity, for a grand 
tribute to the past, the present, and the future of this imperial 
Commonwealth, his words of praise for a bold and enlightened 
people sprang from his heart, leaped into flame upon his 
tongue, and carried all before him. I have never heard another 
such tribute paid to a Commonwealth and her people, and 
doubt if I ever shall. 

Mr. Speaker, Texas is a great State. While she is no longer 
a lone star, she remains and will remain one of the brightest 
in our national galaxy. She has given and is giving men to 
this nation whose fame shall endure. She is producing states- 
men who are held in honor in all sections of our country, men 
in whose fame we all have just pride. The career of our 
departed friend terminated ton soon, perhaps, to achieve fame 



Address of Mr. Sibley, of Pennsylvania. 29 

as a statesman, but among those of us who knew him his 
virtues will ever remain a pleasant memory. He has solved 
life's riddle and has joined that great majority whose ranks 
shall he further swelled by us in the future, more or less 
remote. Doubtless our friend had faults, and when our life's 
work shall be closed may our faults all be forgotten and the 
better side of our nature be held in as kindly remembrance 
by those who shall follow us as we hold to-day the memory 
.and the virtues of Mr. De Graffenreid. 



30 Life and Character of R. C. De Graffenreid, 



ADDRESS OF MR. BROUSSARD, OF LOUISIANA. 

Mr. Speaker : We have met here to-day, according to a 
long-established and very proper custom of the House, to pay 
our respects to a departed brother who has gone from us. 

Reese Calhoun De Graffenreid, a member of this 
Congress, died at the Riggs House on the 30th day of 
August, 1902, with scarcely a premonition of his coming dis- 
solution. Our departed friend was born at Franklin, Teim., 
in 1N59. After attending various private schools, he matricu- 
lated at the University of Tennessee, and at the age of 19, 
after a four years' course at that famous institution, received 
his diploma. Subsequently, at the Lebanon Law School, he 
graduated in the profession of law, after which he practiced 
that profession at Franklin, Term., for a short time. He 
removed to Chattanooga and there continued the practice of 
his profession one year longer, and then removed to Texas. 

In that State he was connected with the Texas and Pacific 
Railroad, then in course of construction, until 1SS3, when he 
resumed the practice of his profession at Longview, Tex., of 
which little city he was a resident at the time of his death. 

He soon entered public life, and shortly after resuming his 
professional duties became the county attorney, which posi- 
tion he subsequently resigned. In 1S88 he was one of the 
electors on the Democratic ticket. In 1S90 he became a 
candidate for Congress, having as his opponents Hon. C. B. 
Kilgore and ex-Governor Hubbard. The canvass for the 
nomination was very thorough, the election resulting in the 
defeat of Mr. De Graffenreid. Nothing daunted, in 1S96 
he again became a candidate for the Democratic nomination 



Address of Mr. Broussard, of Louisiana. 31 

and secured it after a warm contest. He was then elected to 
the Fifty-fifth Congress, to the Fifty-sixth Congress, and to 
the present Congress. 

Mr. Speaker, I entered sendee as a legislator in the Fifty- 
fifth Congress, at the same time Mr. De Graffexreid's 
career opened up in this House. I knew him intimately 
during all of his term of service. I have no desire to say 
of his services to his people, of his devotion to his family, 
and of his useful career aught that is not borne out by a 
strict adherence to the truth. He was a splendid specimen 
of manhood, strong, stout, and handsome, bearing himself 
like a true freeman, independent in thought, magnetic in 
every sense of the word; courageous, brave, and determined. 
These are the qualities which, among other good qualities too 
numerous to mention, marked him a distinguished man. He 
had opened before him a career full of possibilities, which 
made his untimely death the more regrettable to those who 
knew him well and were acquainted with his many fine qual- 
ities. He did not often address himself to the House, but 
when he did so attracted universal attention, presenting his 
facts in strong array, wielded a logic unanswerable, and was 
eloquent to a superlative degree. He was a great campaigner, 
was very impressive, both in appearance and in argument 
upon the stump, and caused those who were pitted against 
him continual fear of his masterly way of presenting public 
questions. 

His reputation as a public speaker was not limited to his 
district, nor even to the territory which composes the State 
of his adoption, but from one end of his country to the other 
his prowess was known and recognized by all men who kept 
up with public business. He created as great an impression, 
as lasting a recollection of his ability, as a public speaker in 



32 Life and Character of R. C. Dc Grajfenreid. 

the great metropolis of the United States that was not less 
than that which he had previously secured in the State of 
Texas. When on a memorable occasion Tammany Hall invited 
him to address the great body of Democrats who compose 
the Tammany Association on the Fourth of July, 1901, we 
all remember the magnificent outburst of enthusiasm that 
greeted his original and quaint way of presenting the cause 
of Democracy, the magnificent reception tendered him, and 
the splendid eulogy which the press of the country paid him 
for that address. 

But it was not only in the capacity of a public speaker 
that we remember our departed friend. To those who knew 
him most intimately here, in his native State, and in the 
State of his adoption, it is because of his fine qualities that 
we most regret him. True to every friend, faithful to every 
trust, courageous in the extreme, he was never known to 
neglect the cause of any friend or of any principle, even to 
the detriment of his own personal interests. Devoted to a 
fond wife, whom he loved dearly, it was shocking in the 
■extreme to learn of his death. 

I saw him the eve of his death, with a splendid physique, 
manly bearing, and courtly manners. I could not surmise 
that at that time the Angel of Death was hovering about 
him ready to strike the fatal blow. None of his friends who 
saw him then, or who saw him a moment before his death, 
realized that his time had come. Always in good humor, 
he was particularly so on this occasion, complained of no 
ailment, but, on the contrary, confident in his splendid health, 
moved about attending to his business, little suspecting the 
near end. He was extremely fond of the society of his 
friends, which numbered scores. It seems the irony of fate 
that he should have died not only without premonition, but 



Address of Mr. Br'oussard, of Louisiana. ; 5 

alone, away from his loved wife, apart from his mam- friends, 
in a room at a public hotel. This sudden death made his 
departure the more deplorable to his many friends. linked, 
in his ease the truism that "in the midst of life we are in 
death" was preeminently illustrated. 

From Washington he was borne to his old home in Long- 
view, accompanied by sorrowing friends hastily got together 
immediately after his death, and there laid to rest in the 
land of his adoption. 

While in the House he served on three committees, Terri- 
tories, Railways and Canals, and Pensions, and on each of 
these did good and effective work for his countrv. 

We mourn his loss as a man; we mourn his loss to the 
public service; we mourn his loss as a good husband; but 
more particularly do we mourn his loss as a true friend and 
a faithful adviser. 

H. Doc. 469 3 



34 Life and Character of R. C. De Graffenrcid. 



Address of Mr. Bartholdt, of Missouri. 

Mr. Speaker: When on September 2 of last year the Con- 
gressional funeral party arrived with what was mortal of the 
late Hon. Reese C. De Graffenreid at his beautiful little 
home town of Longview, in the State of Texas, they found 
upon every hand evidences and manifestations of the most 
"■enuine grief. All elements of the population showed a keen 
realization of the great loss they had sustained, and while their 
sorrow was mute, it was yet eloquent and conclusive proof of 
the enviable popularity and esteem which our departed friend 
had enjoyed among his own people. 

To those of us who had come in close personal contact with 
him. this was no revelation. His loyalty to the cause of the 
people, their interests and concerns, great and small, was bound 
to beget popularity and to find a generous response. His per- 
sonal characteristics, too, were such as to make him friends. 
There was no false in him. He was frank and openhearted, 
and the strong, 'manly instincts which moved and prompted 
him to fight with the courage of his convictions were mollified 
by the gentleness of a kind and sympathetic heart. Never did 
he pretend to be what in reality he was not, and all sham and 
hypocrisy were repugnant to his nature. 

He did not move among his fellow-men meekly and with 
upturned eyes, but he looked everyone squarely in the face 
and gave him the hand shake of an honest man. He always 
stood his ground well, and in his national political associations 
he succeeded in a remarkably short time to surround himself 
with the nimbus of a strong personality and of typical American 
manhood. 



Address of Mr. Bartholdt, of Missouri. 35 

One of his strong traits was gratitude to those who 
befriended him, and I have met no man who prized more 
highly the honor which his constituents had bestowed upon 
him or labored more diligently to deserve and prove himself 
worthy of it. 

It was my privilege to speak a few words to the many 
mourners and friends who had assembled around the open 
casket at Longview, the last resting place of Mr. Dk Gkaffen- 
keid, and, with the permission of the House, I will in part 
repeat these remarks here: 

In paying a last tribute to the memory of our departed friend, I do so 
in behalf of the Republican members of Congress whom on this sad occa- 
sion I am called upon to represent. He was your townsman and your 
Congressman; to the State and nation he was a faithful servant and an 
honest and able statesman; to me he was more; to me he was a dear per- 
sonal friend. Kis geniality, his uprightness, his sterling character, and 
particularly his tolerance toward those who differed from him politically, 
had made him as popular on the Republican side of the Hous= as he was 
among his own political friends; and if it is any consolation for you to 
know it, I will frankly say that among those who to-day are stricken with 
genuine grief on account of his untimely summons there arj hundreds 
and thousands who, while belonging to another party, honored and loved 
him because he was a truly good man. ■ 

He came from that sturdy race which has done so much for the uplift- 
ing and the development of this mighty empire State of the South, and 
the characteristics of which distinguished him in public and private life. 
"De," as we familiarly called him ( had we loved him less we would 
have been less familiar), was always in the harness for his constituents. 
He never shirked a duty, and because of his conscientious zeal there was 
a feeling on the part of all to aid and support him in his purposes, which 
were always found to be honorable and for the best interests of those 
whom he so ably represented at Washington. 

We mourn deeply with you and the State of Texas the great loss you 
have sustained by the death of one who has served his party and "his 
country so well, and our sympathies go out to the dear ones he leaves 
behind him, and who, we hope and trust, will find consolation in the 
universal esteem in which he was held by all who knew him, and in the 
sweet memories of him which we shall preserve for evermore. 



36 Life and Character of R. C. De Graffenreid. 



Address of Mr. Slayden, of Texas. 

Mr. Speaker: Three times in less than eighteen months 
death has invaded the ranks of the Texas delegation in Con- 
gress. 

In August, 1902, Reesk Calhoun De Graffenreid, au- 
di her highly honored servant of the people of the vState of Texas 
and of the whole country, died very suddenly in this city. 

His unexpected death was an indescribable shock to his 
friends in and out of the State of Texas. His person was so 
powerful and his nature so 1 movant that it seemed impossible 
t 1 associate him with the idea of death. Cast in such an heroic 
physical mold and elevated to high political station while still a 
young man, his friends had<every reason to believe that there 
lav before him a long, brilliant, and useful career. 

It was my sad privilege to attend his funeral at the little 
town of Longview. I was impressed with the idea that the 
whole community had turned out to pay a last tribute of respect 
t<> their dead Representative. On his coffin there fell the tears 
of hundreds of his grief-stricken neighbors. From every farm 
and home for miles around the people poured into Longview by 
the thousand to bid a last farewell to one whom they had so 
loved and honored in life. Little children were there in great 
numbers, their innocent faces bearing the most sincere testi- 
mony to the affectionate memory they had for their friend who 
had gone forever. 

Often in his life I had observed the tender and affectionate 
manner which characterized his intercourse with children. 
Thev all seemed to love and instinctively to trust him. And 



Address of Mr. Siayden, of Texas. 37 

little children rarely make mistakes in their estimates of their 

elders. Since the Master said "Suffer little 'children to come 

unto me, and forbid them not," they have almost unerringly 

been able to pick people who have those sterling qualities of 

the heart and mind that are the essentials of character in the 

best men. 

The bravest are the tenderest, 
The loving are the daring. 

Such was my friend Reese De Graffknkkid. 

My colleagues who have preceded me have referred to the 
life and history of Mr. De Gkahfexkeid. I will not under- 
take to do, therefore, in my poor way what they have done- so 
well. 

Suffice it to say that the forbears of our friend were the State- 
builders who in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries braved 
the hard conditions of life and fought Indians and foreign 
enemies in Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. He was 
also the descendant of those brave and virtuous people, the 
Huguenots, who left France for conscience sake and who 
brought with them to this country, as they had taken it to 
Great Britain, a degree of culture and a knowledge of the fine 
arts possessed by no other class of immigrants. Having the 
blood of such sires in his veins, it was quite natural that he in 
turn should seek the frontier. In comparatively early life he 
went to Texas, where he played a man's part in the upbuilding 
of the civilization of that matchless Commonwealth. 

Although trained to a profession, he was forced by the hard 
conditions of iron fortune to take any honest employment that 
offered. He considered himself fortunate when he secured 
work as a laborer on a railway then being constructed. From 
that honorable and useful work he went, in time, into the 
higher service of the people. In the role of laborer and 



38 Life and Character of R. C. De Graffennid. 

equally in that of statesman he worthily did his whole duty. 

His experience .illustrates the truth of the poet who said: 

Honor and fame from no condition rise; 
Act well your part, there the honor lies. 

Mr. Henry, of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I now ask that the 
three series of pending resolutions be adopted. 

The question being taken, the resolutions were unanimously 
adopted. 

The Speaker pro tempore (at 2 o'clock and 55 minutes 
p.m.). In obedience to the resolutions just adopted, the 
House stands adjourned until to-morrow at 12 o'clock noon. 



Proceedings in the Senate 

December 3, 1902. 

message from the house. 

A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. W. J. 
Browning, its Chief Clerk, communicated to the Senate the in- 
telligence of the deaths of Hon. R. C. Dk Gkaffenrkid and 
Hon. John L. Sheppard, late Representatives from the State 
of Texas, and transmitted resolutions of the House thereon. 

DEATH OF REPRESENTATIVES DE GRAFFENREID AND 
SHEPPARD. 

Mr. Bailey. I ask the Chair to lay before the Senate the 
resolutions of the House of Representatives relative to the 
death of Representatives De Graffenreid and Sheppard. 

The Presiding Officer (Mr. Perkins in the chair). The 
Chair lavs before the Senate the resolutions indicated by the 
Senator from Texas, which will be read. 

The Secretary read the resolutions, as follows : 

In the House of Representatives, 

December >, /902. 

Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow of the death 
of Hon. R. C. De GRAFFENREID, late a Representative from the Third 
Congressional district of Texas, and of Hon. John L. Sheppard, late 
a Representative from the Fourth Congressional district of Texas. 

Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions he communicated to the 
Senate. 

Resolved, That as a further mark of respect to the memory of these 
deceased members the House do now adjourn. 

39 



40 Proceedings in the Senate. 

Mr. Bailey. Mr. President, I move, as a mark of respect 
to the memory of the deceased members of the House, that 
the Senate do now adjourn. 

The motion was unanimously agreed to; and (at I o'clock 
and 33 minutes p. m. ) the Senate adjourned until to-morrow, 
Thursday, December 4. 1902, at 12 o'clock 111. 

January 26, 1903. 

messagk from the hots);. 

The message also communicated to the Senate resolutions 
pissed by the House commemorative of the life and services 
of Hon. Reese C. De Graffexkeih, late a Representative 
fn >m the State of Texas. 

O 



